By Zephyria “Hiss…”
Koi, who almost screamed without realizing it, frantically covered his mouth with both hands. His mind went blank at the unexpected situation. Why? Why was Angel here? In such a state?
Angel was a mess, to say the least. His face was covered in blood, as if he had been beaten badly, and he spat out blood-tinged saliva. His staggering body looked like it didn’t have a single healthy spot. Koi looked at the huge man standing tall over him, as if reigning over him, and his face paled.
He was beaten by that man.
He swallowed dryly without realizing it. Anyone would be unable to withstand being hit by such a large man. And if it was Angel, with his slender build, he would surely be sent flying with just one slap on the cheek.
He wanted to rush over to him, support him, and ask if he was okay, but he barely managed to hold back. It was because Angel glared at Koi with frightening eyes for a moment.
〈If we meet again next time, we’re strangers to each other, okay?〉
Angel’s words echoed in his head. Followed by the request he had made.
〈Promise me, you’ll never acknowledge me.〉
Koi had no choice but to obey, remembering the firm promise he had made. Seeing Koi barely standing on his own two feet, suppressing the urge to run to him, Angel smiled faintly.
‘Good boy.’
He mouthed the words. Koi suddenly thought that Angel might have already anticipated this situation.
〈I’ll be leaving soon.〉
Just as he recalled his words, Ashley blocked Koi’s path. With his back to Koi, he opened his mouth.
“What are you doing? You’re scaring Koi.”
A displeased expression was evident in Ashley’s voice. Soon, a voice he had never heard before answered him.
“That’s none of my business. Now, spill it. What did the rent boy behind you talk about with this whore?”
A strange chill ran down his spine. Koi was puzzled, but he soon realized that Ashley was very angry at the voice that followed.
“I’m warning you, if you say another word like that to my Koi, I’ll make you regret it.”
My Koi.
It was clearly a situation he should be displeased with, but Koi’s heart warmed instead. Ashley was genuinely angry for him. And he even said ‘my Koi.’
He even felt a sense of pride for some reason, but what came back was the man’s ridicule.
“Oh, do you know that your precious Koi kissed this whore?”
Ashley didn’t answer immediately. After a few seconds of silence, Koi flinched for a moment at Ashley’s expression as he slowly turned around. Ashley, who had replaced his answer with that reaction, frowned and soon spoke to the man again.
“He must have been forced.”
“Huh.”
The man let out a short sigh as if he was dumbfounded. Koi was anxiously waiting, unable to even imagine what would happen next, when he suddenly raised his foot and mercilessly kicked Angel in the stomach.
“Ugh!”
Angel gasped and collapsed. Koi turned pale and covered his mouth again. He tried to run to him without being able to hold back, but Ashley first put his arm around Koi’s shoulder and opened his mouth.
“Enough, you know that torture or assault doesn’t help with confessions, right? If you want to vent, go home and do it, this is my house.”
The surroundings fell silent in an instant. The man stopped moving, and only silence flowed between them. No sound was heard except for Angel’s faint, rough breathing. Koi, who had turned pale, met the man’s eyes for a moment. The man’s purple eyes darkened, and a cold gaze flew straight at him and pierced him.
At that moment, Koi knew. The reason why the man was treating Angel so cruelly. Angel would never say it himself. He knew it too. The person the man was threatening now was Koi. If you don’t speak, Angel will suffer even more, he was saying. So clearly.
“Koi.”
Ashley whispered in Koi’s ear in a low voice.
“Just tell me what you talked about with that man. Then they’ll leave soon.”
Koi knew that Ashley was telling the truth. But he couldn’t open his mouth rashly. There was also the promise with Angel, but he couldn’t even imagine what would happen to Angel after they left.
Koi swallowed hard and parted his lips with difficulty. He tried hard to find an answer that would satisfy them while keeping his promise with Angel, and he began to speak.
“…He just said, let’s go out for some fresh air… I was feeling stuffy too, so I went with him.”
“Even though you just met?”
Ashley asked. There was no sarcasm in his voice, but he didn’t completely trust Koi’s words either. Koi worked his head hard, chose his words, and opened his mouth.
“That’s right, but… I just wanted to. You know, sometimes there are times like that. When you suddenly do something impulsive like that…”
Ashley looked down at him without saying anything. The man sighed in disbelief. Just as Koi turned pale, thinking that he might beat Angel again, Ashley asked the man.
“What did he say?”
At the quiet voice, the man frowned irritably.
“He said he kissed him because he was handsome.”
“What?”
Ashley frowned, and Koi blushed in embarrassment. The man continued to sneer.
“It’s probably true. He likes anything pretty and handsome, no matter what.”
“Who says that?”
When Ashley asked with a still-frowning face, the man answered without hesitation.
“Pittman got played.”
He looked down at Angel and continued.
“This rent boy wanted a white-tailed eagle as a gift. A pair with a golden eagle. There’s only one reason. Just because the eagle is beautiful. But do you know what this rent boy did?”
The man made a nervous laugh. In the silence, he made a bombshell announcement.
“He slept with the employee who was managing the eagle. Even in Pittman’s bed.”
Koi, flustered, lost his words and looked at Angel. He was still lying on the floor, not moving. The man continued to sneer and continued.
“Miller, if you don’t come to your senses, this guy will be rolling around in your bed tomorrow! With ‘your Koi’, that is.”
Ashley’s gaze turned to Koi, and the blood drained from Koi’s face in an instant.
“T-That’s not true. Really, Ash. Please believe me.”
Koi was flustered and immediately denied it. Sleeping with someone other than Ashley was unimaginable. I’ve only ever had you in my life, you know I love you, I wanted to swear it over and over again, but Ashley didn’t give him a chance. Ashley, who turned his gaze back to the man, opened his mouth.
“Why did you bring him here? If you needed confirmation, isn’t it enough now?”
At the quiet voice, the man did not answer immediately. When he opened his mouth, as if choosing his words, a low laugh was heard from below.
“Hehehe, hehehehe…”
Everyone’s eyes turned to him. Angel was laughing, his shoulders shaking slightly. The man asked with a frown.
“What’s so funny?”
Angel, still chuckling, wiped the blood flowing from his mouth with the back of his hand and said.
“It’s funny, the way you guys are acting.”
Ashley’s expression hardened, and the man’s eyes also turned fierce. Angel, staggering, raised his body and said.
“Shall I tell you why you brought me here? Shepherd can’t handle me alone.”
“What?”
Ashley looked at the man with a displeased face, but the man was still only looking down at Angel. Angel, standing a few steps away from him, shook his head at him and made a pitiful expression.
“You thought two of you could handle me?”
The chuckling laughter continued again. Koi was inwardly afraid that he might have lost his mind. Ashley was also in the same situation, not knowing what was going on. But the only man who knew the situation was only staring at Angel. Angel shook his head at him and made a pitiful expression.
“Shepherd, but there are only two of you.”
Angel whispered in a sweet voice.
“And right now, you don’t have your precious Gamma guards either.”
“Wait…”
The man tried to say something. But before he could even say a word, his large body staggered. It wasn’t just Shepherd. Koi was also surprised to see Ashley suddenly turn pale and cover his nose and mouth with his hands, and his eyes widened.
Only Koi and Angel were fine. Koi clearly saw with his own eyes the men, who were almost twice as big as them, collapsing helplessly. And he also realized that Angel was the one who made it happen.
Angel had released Pheromones.
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202
“Hiss……”
Koi, who almost screamed without realizing it, frantically covered his mouth with both hands. His mind went blank at the unexpected situation. Why? Why was Angel here? In that state?
Angel was a mess, to say the least. His face was covered in blood as if he had been beaten severely, and he spat out blood-tinged saliva. His staggering body seemed to have no intact parts. Koi’s face paled as he saw the huge man standing tall over him, as if reigning over him.
He was beaten by that man.
Koi swallowed hard without realizing it. No one could withstand being beaten by such a large man. Moreover, if Angel, with his slender physique, was hit on the cheek, he would surely fly away.
He wanted to rush to support him and ask if he was okay, but he barely managed to hold back. It was because Angel glared at Koi with a terrifying look for a moment.
〈If we meet again next time, we are strangers to each other, got it?〉
Angel’s words echoed in his head. Followed by his request.
〈Promise me, never acknowledge me.〉
Koi had no choice but to obey, remembering his firm resolution. Seeing Koi barely standing on his own two feet, suppressing the urge to run to him, Angel smiled faintly.
‘Good boy.’
He said with his lips. Koi suddenly thought that Angel might have already anticipated this situation.
〈I’m leaving soon.〉
Just as he recalled his words, Ashley blocked Koi’s path. With his back to Koi, he opened his mouth.
“What are you doing? You’re startling Koi.”
A displeased expression was evident in Ashley’s voice. Soon, a voice he had never heard before responded to his words.
“That’s none of my business. Now, spit it out. What did the rent boy behind you talk about with this slut?”
Suddenly, a strange chill ran down his spine. Koi was puzzled, but he soon realized that Ashley was very angry at the voice he heard next.
“I’m warning you, if you say such a thing to my Koi one more time, I’ll make you regret it.”
My Koi.
It was clearly a situation where he should be displeased, but Koi’s heart warmed instead. Ashley was genuinely angry for him. And he even said ‘my Koi.’
He even felt a sense of pride, but what came back was the man’s ridicule.
“Oh, do you know that your precious Koi kissed this slut?”
Ashley didn’t answer right away. After a few seconds of silence, Koi flinched for a moment at Ashley’s expression as he slowly turned around. Ashley, who replaced the answer with that reaction, frowned and soon spoke to the man again.
“He must have been forced.”
“Huh.”
The man let out a short sigh as if he was dumbfounded. Koi was anxiously waiting, unable to even predict what would happen next, when suddenly he raised his foot and mercilessly kicked Angel in the stomach.
“Ugh!”
Angel swallowed his breath like a scream and collapsed. Koi turned pale and covered his mouth again. He tried to run to him, unable to bear it, but before that, Ashley put his arm around Koi’s shoulder and opened his mouth.
“Enough, you know that torture or assault doesn’t help with confessions, right? If you want to vent, go home and do it, this is my house.”
The surroundings became quiet in an instant. The man stopped moving, and only silence flowed between them. No sound was heard except for Angel’s faint, rough breathing. Koi, who had turned pale, met the man’s eyes for a moment. The man’s purple eyes became darker, and a cold gaze flew straight at him and pierced him.
At that moment, Koi knew. The reason why the man was treating Angel so cruelly. Angel would never say it himself. He also knew. The person the man was threatening now was Koi. If you don’t speak, Angel will suffer even more, he was saying. So clearly.
“Koi.”
Ashley whispered in Koi’s ear in a low voice.
“Just tell me what you talked about with that man. Then they’ll leave soon.”
Koi knew that Ashley was telling the truth. But he couldn’t open his mouth rashly. There was also a promise with Angel, but he couldn’t even imagine what would happen to Angel after they left.
Koi, who swallowed hard, parted his lips with difficulty. He tried hard to find an answer that would satisfy them while keeping his promise with Angel, and he opened his mouth.
“……He just said, let’s go out for some air…… I was feeling stuffy too, so I went with him.”
“Even though you just met?”
Ashley asked. There was no sarcasm in his voice, but he didn’t completely trust Koi’s words either. Koi worked hard to think and chose his words to open his mouth.
“That’s right, but I just…… wanted to. You know, sometimes there are times like that. When you suddenly do something impulsive…….”
Ashley looked down at him without saying a word. The man sighed in disbelief. Just as Koi turned pale at the thought that he might beat Angel again, Ashley asked the man.
“What did he say?”
At the quiet voice, the man frowned irritably.
“He said he kissed him because he was handsome.”
“What?”
Ashley frowned, and Koi blushed in embarrassment. The man continued to sneer.
“It’s probably true. He likes anything pretty and handsome, no matter what.”
“Who says that?”
When Ashley asked with a still frowning face, the man answered without hesitation.
“Pittman got screwed.”
He looked down at Angel and continued.
“This rent boy wanted a white-headed eagle as a gift, a pair with a golden eagle. There’s only one reason. Just because the eagle is beautiful. But do you know what this rent boy did?”
The man let out a nervous laugh. In the silence, he made a bombshell statement.
“He slept with the employee who was managing the eagle. Even in Pittman’s bed.”
Koi was flustered and lost his words and looked at Angel. He was still lying on the floor, not moving. The man continued to sneer and continued.
“Miller, if you don’t come to your senses, this guy will be rolling around in your bed tomorrow! With ‘your Koi’.”
Ashley’s gaze turned to Koi, and the color drained from Koi’s face in an instant.
“Th, that’s not true. Really, Ash. Please believe me.”
Koi was flustered and immediately denied it. Sleeping with someone other than Ashley was unimaginable. He wanted to say that he had only ever had him in his life, that he loved him and that he knew it, and that he could swear it any number of times, but Ashley didn’t give him a chance. Ashley, who turned his gaze back to the man, opened his mouth.
“Why did you bring this guy here? If you needed confirmation, isn’t it enough now?”
At the quiet voice, the man did not answer immediately. When he opened his mouth, as if choosing his words, a low laugh was heard from below.
“Hehehe, hehehehe…….”
Everyone’s eyes turned to him. Angel was laughing, his shoulders shaking slightly. The man asked with a frown.
“What’s so funny?”
Angel, still chuckling, wiped the blood flowing from his mouth with the back of his hand and said.
“It’s funny, the way you guys are acting.”
Ashley’s expression hardened, and the man’s eyes also became fierce. Angel, who staggered and raised his body, said as he wiped the blood flowing from his mouth with the back of his hand.
“Shall I tell you why you brought me here? Shepherd can’t handle me alone.”
“What?”
Ashley looked at the man with a displeased face, but the man was still only looking down at Angel. Angel, who stood a few steps away from him, continued.
“You thought you could handle me with two people?”
The chuckling laughter continued again. Koi was inwardly afraid that he might have lost his mind. Ashley was also in the same situation, not knowing what was going on. But the man, who was the only one who knew the situation, was only staring at Angel. Angel shook his head at him and gave him a look of pity.
“Shepherd, but there are only two of you.”
Angel whispered in a sweet voice.
“And you don’t have your precious Gamma guards right now.”
“Wait…….”
The man tried to say something. But before he could even say a word, his large body staggered. It wasn’t just Shepherd. Koi was also surprised to see Ashley suddenly turn pale and cover his nose and mouth with his hands, and his eyes widened.
Only Koi and Angel were fine. Koi clearly saw with his own eyes the men, who were almost twice as big as them, collapsing helplessly. And he also realized that Angel was the one who made it happen.
Angel had released Pheromones.
203 – LMI 203
“Ash!”
Suddenly, Ashley turned pale and began to vomit. Koi, startled by the sight of him falling to his knees, retching and curling up, cried out and rushed over.
“Ash, what’s wrong? Snap out of it, Ash!”
Despite repeatedly calling his name, Ashley’s seizure only worsened. Seeing him struggle to breathe, Koi turned pale and looked around frantically. But he soon became even more flustered.
Gone.
No matter how much he searched, it was the same. The person he was looking for was nowhere to be seen.
Angel has disappeared.
Koi barely recalled, in a state close to panic. While he had been distracted by Ashley, Angel had vanished without a trace. All that remained were the man who had brought Angel, Ashley, and himself. Even then, the man was completely unconscious and collapsed.
As Koi was about to hurriedly contact the front desk, leaving Ashley gasping and suffering, Ashley grabbed him as he stood up. Surprised, Koi looked down at Ashley, who forcibly swallowed his rising nausea and barely opened his mouth.
“Ph, one.”
“Huh?”
Not understanding the broken sound properly, Koi quickly bent down to listen as Ashley barely managed to spit out words between rough breaths.
“My, cell, phone, on, table.”
Turning his gaze in the direction pointed by Ashley’s barely raised fingertip, Koi immediately spotted his cell phone. Rushing over, Koi snatched the phone and held it out to Ashley.
“He-here.”
Gasping for breath, Ashley opened the phone screen. After pressing a few buttons, a refreshing breeze was felt, and a faint mechanical sound was heard.
The ventilation system installed throughout the spacious house activated all at once. Meanwhile, Ashley continued to retch repeatedly. Seeing him spit out saliva mixed with stomach acid even though there was nothing left to come out, Koi didn’t know what to do and hurriedly returned with a cup of water. By then, Ashley, who had been suffering face-down on the floor, had already lost consciousness.
“Ash!”
Koi quickly embraced him and tried to give him water, but no matter how he tilted the cup, the water just flowed down his chin without going down his throat. He called his name repeatedly and shook his body, but there was no response. Just as he felt his heart sinking, a voice came from the cell phone.
“…sir? Are you alright? Mr. Miller?”
Hearing the repeated voice, Koi hurriedly answered the phone.
“Um, Ash has lost consciousness now. I don’t know what to do…”
After a brief pause, the other person spoke.
“What happened? Explain briefly.”
Koi hesitated for a moment but finally opened up. Minimizing the story about Angel, he explained that this happened after smelling the extreme Omega’s scent. She quickly replied.
“I’ll be there right away. You don’t need to call an ambulance.”
Without asking who Koi was or explaining who she was, she hung up. Koi was perplexed but had no choice but to trust and wait, as Ashley had called this person first.
She arrived, as she said, without taking too long. And Koi learned the identity of the person who had answered the phone.
The moment he saw her, the color drained from Koi’s face, and his whole body froze. Although her face was much older than before, he recognized her at first glance.
“You don’t actually dislike Ashley Miller, do you?”
It was Ashley’s father’s secretary.
* * *
People who rushed out of the elevator and straight into the living room immediately surrounded Ashley. Koi was pushed out before he could do anything. When he tried to push them away and approach Ashley again, someone grabbed him. Startled, he turned to find her holding his shoulder.
“Le-let go.”
Koi reflexively became frightened but managed to squeeze out words from his vocal cords. However, she opened her mouth with the same expressionless face.
“There’s nothing you can do anyway, now or then.”
She struck at Koi’s most vulnerable spot, just like before.
“You’re still of no help, aren’t you? Junior ended up like this even though you were here.”
Because it was so true, Koi couldn’t refute. Mere feelings of injustice couldn’t accomplish anything. But he couldn’t just back down either.
“Ash needs me.”
“No, what Junior needs are medical staff and employees to handle the aftermath. Those people right there.”
The secretary glanced at them once before looking back at Koi.
“Wouldn’t you be more helpful by staying out of the way?”
There were no more words he could use to resist. As Koi bit his lip, the secretary removed her hand from his shoulder. As she was about to brush past Koi, he spoke up.
“Why is Ash suddenly like this? Can you at least tell me that?”
His voice carried more desperation than anger. Looking up at him, the secretary quickly continued.
“Ash is an Alpha, but it doesn’t make sense for him to have a seizure like this from an Omega’s pheromones. Aren’t Omegas and Alphas supposed to get… aroused when they smell each other’s pheromones? So why is Ash reacting like this?”
Hesitating slightly to mention the embarrassing word, Koi looked at her anxiously. Suddenly, she raised her hand. As Koi unconsciously stepped back, the secretary reached out and unexpectedly caressed his cheek with a gentle voice.
“You’ve become a fine man, Corner Niles.”
Caught off guard by the unexpected situation, Koi could only blink, unable to respond immediately. She narrowed her eyes and muttered as if to herself.
“You used to not even dare to look me in the eye, how admirable.”
Belatedly realizing she was mocking him, Koi shook his head and brushed her hand away.
“Please answer my question first. What’s happened to Ash? Why is he having such an abnormal reaction to Omega pheromones?”
At his somewhat sharper tone, the secretary raised her eyebrows in feigned surprise, then withdrew her hand and instead brushed her short hair behind her shoulder.
“For a normal Alpha, yes, they wouldn’t have such a repulsive reaction to Omega pheromones. Even for an extreme Alpha, it wouldn’t be different.”
“…Then, is it because it’s an extreme Omega’s pheromones?”
“That’s not it.”
The secretary cut off Koi’s cautious speculation.
“Junior reacts like that to any Omega’s scent. He can’t bear it. It’s really absurd that an Alpha has seizures from Omega pheromones, but it’s the truth.”
Even though he understood all her words, it didn’t make sense. Why? How? This doesn’t happen to other Alphas.
Why only Ash?
“What happened to Ash?”
At Koi’s trembling voice, she seemed to think for a moment before answering.
“You should hear that directly from Junior. It doesn’t seem like something I should talk about.”
“Wait!”
Koi urgently called out to her as she was about to turn away. The secretary stopped and turned back, and Koi hesitated before speaking.
“When Ash wakes up, if there’s any pheromone scent left… will he react like this again?”
To his uncertain question, the secretary answered with an expressionless face.
“Probably? He’s always been like this when he smells Omega scents.”
As she was about to turn away again, she stopped and said, “Ah.”
“It’s not ‘wait,’ it’s Bernice. Miss Bernice.”
After revealing her name, she promptly walked towards the people providing emergency treatment. Koi was left standing there, blankly watching them.
* * *
Ash having an adverse reaction to Omega scents.
Koi walked down the street, lost in thought. Amidst the busy people, there was nothing he could do, and he was more of a burden. Inevitably, he left after asking to be contacted when Ashley woke up. The sudden situation left his mind in turmoil. When he came to his senses, he had already been walking for quite some time.
Was that why Ash said it was better to be a Beta?
Then how had he been extracting pheromones all this time? Were all his partners Betas until now? I really don’t understand any of this…
He would have to ask Ashley directly when he wakes up. But there was still something bothering him.
If what Angel said was true.
Suddenly, a chill ran down his spine.
If I’m really an Omega, I might be harmful to Ash.
At that moment, his heart sank.
I might not be able to stay with Ash anymore…
Just as he thought this, he suddenly felt a heat rising from within his body. Koi stopped in his tracks, gasping for breath. His blood surged, and his pulse raced. As dizziness set in and his breathing quickened, excitement flowed from his toes to the top of his head.
He had felt this sensation before. When he had been feverish and sick for days, thinking it was just a strange flu – that very sensation returned to him now.
“You’ll know when your heat cycle comes.”
At that moment, Angel’s words came to mind, and his vision turned white.